Price Tag
by Infinite Snow
Summary: Hey Ikuto? Even though Tadase broke my heart by not keeping his promises and cheating on me with Saaya, are you willing to try? To make me fall in love with you? Because do know the price of making that happen is high. After all, it is very expensive to fall in love for a second time. [AmuxIkuto, Amuto]


Amu grumbled as she walked down endless streets. Today she was supposed to go on a date with Tadase, but he never showed up. At their reserved table in the restaurant, she waited and waited until she just decided to storm out of the restaurant to let the next couple sit there, because there was a long line of people waiting to eat there.

"At least that couple showed up on TIME," Amu muttered.

"Wow," Ran said, "If I think about it, isn't this the first time Tadase-kun stood you up?"

"No," Amu shook her head, "This is the first time he thought it is cool to miss a date. But a lot of times he made small promises to meet me and he didn't. Makes me wonder what is he doing with the time we were supposed to spend together. Is he using it on someone else?"

"I do not know, Amu-chan but it sure seems like it," Miki sadly said, "Even though I sometimes hate being blunt."

Amu smiled at the blue chara, "No, Miki, I would be happier if you told me what is on your mind. Remember, I want to be like you, okay?"

Miki smiled and nodded.

Dia put a finger to her chin and tapped it, "So how are we going to find out what is going on?"

Amu sighed, "I guess I have to see him. And put an end to all of this."

"Are you sure desu?" Su asked.

"What do you mean?" Amu asked, tilting her head in confusion at the green chara.

"I mean, he didn't really cheat on you, or we don't know because we never saw. At least get some concrete evidence that he really doesn't like you desu," Su said.

"Now that I think about it, Su has a point. We don't know, we are just making suggestions and assumptions. We need SOLID evidence," Dia said.

"Does this mean carrying around a camera?" Amu asked.

"Well, yeah, and a tape recorder, or how about your phone? Just record it on there!" Ran cheered. Amu thought about it and nodded.

"Good thinking, girls. As a thank-you gift, I will get you four cookies," Amu smiled. The four cheered as they walked into a pastry shop.

oOo

Amu walked down the halls of the school one day. The guardians meeting were let out early, much to Amu's surprise. Rima had a bad feeling around to which why Tadase abruptly put his hand down on the table and yelled for the meeting to end all of a sudden. She wanted to strangle him, but Nagihiko had to pull her back.

Amu sighed. When Rima suspected anything, the little midget was always right. Amu sighed as she recalled the memory.

"_Amu."_

_The said pinkette turned around. She came face-to-face with her best friend, Rima._

"_Yes Rima?"_

"_I think Hotori is up to something," Rima said, "Not to hurt you or anything but just keep your eyes open and don't trust anything he says. He might be setting you up or something and I do not want you to fall for it and get hurt in the end, Amu. I care about you too much than to not say anything."_

_Amu nodded. She knew Rima thought about her before she said anything to her._

"_Yes, Rima. Thank you for your help. I will do as you advised," Amu smiled, "Now go enjoy your extra time with Fujisaki-san."_

_Rima rolled her eyes, "Amu, you are one of the few people who can call my boyfriend by his name."_

_Amu laughed and pushed the little blonde out, and said, "Fine. Have fun with Nagihiko. And tell me all the details okay? You never know when he could propose to you. You might need my artistic skills in helping with setting up your wedding you two will have in the future."_

_Rima blushed profusely at the idea of 'marriage' but nevertheless gave Amu a quick hug before running up to her boyfriend, then took his hand and then the both of them disappeared from Amu's vision._

_Amu sighed._

"_If only Tadase was that faithful, if only," the pinkette propped her palms underneath her chin and lounged around in her Joker's chair._

Amu sighed. When packing her stuff up to leave the Royal Garden, she got a note from Tadase in her bookbag. It had said:

Dear Hinamori-san,

Can I meet you in Nikaidou sensei's classroom?

From,

Hotori-san

Amu's eyes widened. First of all Nikaidou sensei said he was having no tutorials that evening. And second of all, since when did her boyfriend call her name so formally as if they had never met? Amu sighed and decided to keep her eyes open. She took her phone out and flipped out the camcorder app to record anything that comes up.

Amu neared the classroom. Her four charas stayed by her side and didn't make one little peep.

Amu went to the window of her teacher's classroom.

There was her boyfriend, Tadase, for once as promised. But sitting on his lap and having her lips attached to his like a vice's was her school enemy, Yamabuki Saaya.

Saaya had a stupid dream of crushing Amu's happiness. She wanted Tadase of all the good looking Guardians. She fantasized about Kuukai and Kairi and Nagihiko, but she wanted Tadase the most because he was the one closest to Amu, and to her, the King made the Joker happy.

Amu's heart broke into shards, but she remembered what her charas said the day before.

Amu pressed record and lifted her phone. She recorded for three minutes and when they broke apart, Amu grimaced, stopped the recording and barged in.

"A-Amu it isn't what you think!"

"Kissing back? I knew you were a jerk," Amu smirked. Saaya growled. Why wasn't Amu getting fed up?!

"I didn't mean to! Please, I am faithful!"

Then Amu started laughing.

"You? Being faithful? Yeah and I am a unicorn!" Amu was clutching her sides out of dark humor.

"Amu, please! She forced this on me!" Tadase tried to force Saaya off of him but she just grinded onto him making Tadase squirm uncomfortably.

"Yeah right. If really then can you come back to me without ever looking at Saaya again?" Amu's eyes slit dangerously. Even if Tadase said yes she knew his body would do otherwise.

Tadase sat quietly, not making one sound.

Amu grinned. She knew this. Flipping out her phone she pressed play and held the screen in front of those two, and the pair's faces drained out of color when Saaya's moans filled the air as a certain blonde created love marks or as we call it, hickeys on her tanned skin. Saaya looked like she poured make up on herself and her tanned skin didn't look appealing. More like she had stood in the sun for hours.

Then Amu stopped the recording half-way and turned off her cell phone.

"I wonder what I will do with this," Amu hmm'ed in amusement. Although Saaya would love to make it official that she was with Hotori, she wouldn't want a video going viral that made her look so slutty like she was on the inside. She wouldn't want something that could pull down her high reputation.

Amu smirked, "Even if you tried to catch me, I can always out-run you."

"Aww, you are just going to run to those stupid imaginary bitches that you always have floating around you, aren't you?" Saaya smirked.

"Well my charas are the best in the world, but even without my change in character with one of my would-be selves, I can outrun you slowpokes. You guys must be fat," Amu smirked even more as she turned around.

Before leaving, Amu looked at Saaya over her shoulder and said, "By the way, you also insulted your slutty boyfriend. He also has an imaginary bitch floating around him. Isn't that right, ouji-sama?"

Flashing a charming smile, Amu ran out and slammed the door closed after her. When Tadase chara changed with Kiseki and started yelling at Amu for calling him 'prince' he let Saaya endure the wrath. Saaya's agonized screams and pained cries to be let out made Amu smirk.

"Good payback, Amu," Dia smiled.

Amu smiled in satisfaction as the room temperature significantly raised, enough to make someone a puddle by then. But she knew Tadase's chara change wouldn't kill anyone. Not when he is on a ranting rage tantrum of being called a prince. Saaya could live, and she would be out sooner had she put a bucket on Tadase's head, but she doesn't know that and Amu didn't feel like telling her the key out.

"Sorry if she called you imaginary bitches. I didn't call you that, okay?" Amu smiled.

"We believe you. We love you so much," Miki smiled. Amu smiled.

"Don't worry! There are plenty of soccer balls in the field!" Ran cheered.

"Um, GENIUS, the actual phrase is 'plenty of fish in the sea'," Miki wacked her on the head.

"Don't worry, desu," Su smiled, "You will find someone who loves you for who you really are in your heart."

"Thanks, Su," Amu's heart felt like lead. That was why Rima had doubted Tadase. She knew something was coming up.

"A-Anyway, you girls, let's go home," Amu tried to smile.

The four charas went and followed their owner. They knew something was up with her. Their brave and strong Amu's façade was this close to peeling off. Amu was on the vulnerable side of showing her tears and heart-broken sobs. She was this close to losing it. All because of Tadase.

Amu smiled at the four when they reached her room.

"Amu-chan what about homework?" Ran asked her.

"It is Friday. I will start on it tomorrow," Amu smiled.

"Then where are you going?" Miki asked as she watched her owner go out the door. Amu slipped her phone into her skirt pocket.

"I need to go for a walk to clear up my head."

The four nodded, wanting their owner to get over the heartbreak as soon as possible.

"If only she knew who loved her more than Tadase…" Miki trailed off.

"YOU MEAN KUKAI LIKES HER?!" Ran shrieked. That got her another good whack from the pencil.

"No you sissy."

"THEN WHO?!"

"She is talking about Ikuto, Ran," Dia floated up to her sister and began gently rubbing the bump there to soothe Ran's pain. Ran gave a sheepish smile back to Dia after muttering sorry.

"And bingo was its namo nya!"

The four froze.

"Yoru desu?!"

"When did you get here?" Dia raised an eyebrow.

"Ikuto asked me not to follow him. He said he had business at the park. He told me to come here, so I did. Which is also making me curious why Amu is not here nya," Yoru pawed his head.

"Funny because she just left."

"Oh my god."

"Moeeeeeee desu! They are going to run into each other desu!" Su squealed like a fan girl which she kind of was.

oOo

Amu sighed sadly as she slumped down some random tree at the park. Little did she know it was someone's favorite tree.

She watched little children run off together hand in hand for ice-cream. Amu fondly smiled. She remembered when she went out for ice cream with Tadase, back when he was all sweet and dedicated.

But now he wasn't. Next teenage couples were walking hand in hand. They smiled at each other and blushed at each other's close proximity and called each other cute nicknames.

She even saw a newlywed couple who were running through the park with newfound adrenaline. Amu eyed the bride in the long silk gown and the groom who was in a sophisticated black tuxedo.

They were running and not even bothering to take their new car together with the sign of 'JUST MARRIED' hanging on the trunk.

Amu smiled. She wished she could be that lucky girl one day.

"Someday I wish I am like her…" a cold voice breathed next to her neck, "Is what you are thinking, right Amu?"

Amu didn't flinch.

"Hey Ikuto. Decided to put up with me today?" Amu asked.

Ikuto was taken aback of Amu's resigned nature. She was definitely the double-sided girl of Cool 'N' Spicy and Cute he knew and she was definitely not optimistic like always.

"Amu, what's wrong?" Ikuto asked. Amu sent him an annoyed look.

"And where is kiddy king?" Ikuto scratched his head and looked around for the little blonde that declared him the center of the everyday life. Amu twitched at his name.

"What Tadase?" Amu asked sarcastically.

"Your boyfriend, right?" Ikuto's heart hurt to say the b-word.

Amu's eyes wavered with hurt and sorrow, an action that didn't go un noticed by Ikuto's cat-like reflexes and sharp vision.

"Spill."

Amu flipped out her phone, opened the recorder and then went to her stored data of videos. She opened the video of Tadase and Saaya having a steamy kissing session with a bit of groping included. It had a little triangle button on top of the frozen picture.

"Press play."

Amu handed it to Ikuto. The frozen picture made him enraged. When he placed play, Ikuto got furious to how Tadase responded to Saaya's kiss. When the video finally ended, Ikuto could've broken the phone then and there but had to keep in mind that this phone belonged to Amu. If that was his phone he would've reduced it not into pieces, but fine grain powder.

Ikuto handed the phone back to Amu. Amu mumbled thanks and snapped it closed and slid it into her skirt pocket.

"So how long had this been happening?" Ikuto asked.

"I don't know, a month after Tadase and I started dating?" Amu shrugged her shoulders.

"How did you know this?" Ikuto asked.

"Well, he would start promising to meet up at places after school, or to have one on one time at my house or his house. But most of those promises, he just bailed out on me," Amu sighed, "Then after a long while I had considered breaking up with him because although I do not expect a full commitment out of him, I expect him to be a little attentive, not that I want to be a clingy person."

Ikuto nodded.

"Then when I was on the verge of breaking up, I told him if I should just end it there because I wasn't feeling anything back," Amu sighed, "And to get away with this he promised me to have a dinner at this nice Italian restaurant I had always wanted to eat at, and he even made reservations yesterday. I waited and waited for hours and then I just gave up. I gave the table to the next couple in the long line of patient people waiting. At least that couple remembered to show up on time. That was my first date and he stood me up. Made me think if he was with Saaya all these times I thought he was just 'busy'."

Amu sighed and then just looked on forward.

"So, Ikuto? What brings you here? Did you get dumped on your first date?"

"No."

"Oh, wow now you must be on cloud nine, huh?" Amu sarcastically snorted but then silenced when she saw another cute couple walk by with taiyaki in their hands.

"If only Tadase and I were like that," Amu pointed to the couple for a fraction of a second, "If only."

Arms wrapped around Amu's waist and a head snuggled into Amu's shoulders.

"You know, Amu, there is someone else who loves you more than the Kiddy King."

Amu's eyes raised in amusement.

"Oh? And who would that be, Ikuto?"

"Me."

Amu froze.

"I know you just got your heart trampled," Ikuto said, "And I am willing to wait."

"You're missing the point, Ikuto," Amu whispered.

"What am I not understanding?" Ikuto asked, just tightening his arm hold on Amu.

"I got my heart broken by Tadase," Amu said, "And earning my love will be more difficult than making me fall in love for the first time. Because when you get your heart broken, you become even more distant to it. You do not want to go near it. Are you willing to work hard for it still, despite the fact I am telling you this?"

Ikuto just dragged her into his lap and he wrapped his legs around hers.

"I am willing to wait forever for you to finally realize."

Amu softly smiled.

"Then do your best, in capturing my heart, and making me fall in love for a second time."

"I will succeed."

And they sat like that, basking in the sun's rays and enjoying each other's company.

And they both knew, falling in love for the second time would be harder. But it was all worth the try for Amu and Ikuto.

-fin-


End file.
